The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1888. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1814, 13 April 1888, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1888. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The " Timaru Evening Mail" says that it has learned on the best authority that Mr Rolleaton is to be raised to the Upper House. The Duobesa of Hamilton has opened a Bhop at Ipswioh for the sale of butter, and is orowded with orders at 1b 7d per lb. It is reported that a prospecting party from Waitara, who have been in the country near the head waters of the Wanganui have found copper ore, but nothing definite is known, Six species of North American birds have become extinct in the last ten years, and it is believed that the pesky little English Bparrow has had a great deal to do with it. The sum of 8000dol has been raised to enable Dr Peters to continue the work of a thorough exploration of the site of ancient Babylon. Important revelations are confidently expected from this work. A Kuosian claims to have found a new subBtitute for indiarubber. It is stongly suspected that, while travelling in England recently, he " tackled " a ham sandwich at a railway restaurant. Mr W. P. Moat, M.H.R., who has been ill for a month from the effects of a sunstroke suffered by him while working at his place at MahuraDgi, is about again, having almost entirely recovered. Lord Salisbury said last November, " The state of English agriculture is simply deplorable. It is impossible to exaggerate the evils and sufferings which have been caused by the sudden revolution of which, in the last few years, we have been the witnesses." A vory deaf man has a charming wife and a oross dog. One morning a friend met him and said " Good morning, Mr Blank. Your wife made a vory pleasant call on us last evening." " I'm very sorry," was the startling answer of the deaf citizen. " I'll see that it doesn't ocour again, I'm going to chain her up after this." More misfortunes for Mr Froude | Mr 0. S. Salmon, an authority on West Indian subjects, haß written a book for the Oobden Club eerioß of publications, which, it iB said, will be a complete refutation of many, if not all* the statements set forth by the " great" historian in his last effort of imagination "The English in the West ladies." Maggie Hazelton, of Trenton, N.J., a twenty-sig-year-old maiden, is said to bo the heaviest girl in the world. She weighs 967 pounds, and is five feet four and three rfourths inches high. Her waist measures ninety-eight inches, her buat 116 inches, and her arm thirtyreighfc inches. She is said to have a very small appetite, A very pretty^ addition to the rencrtoivo of | dance musio will be found in the " White Wings " valse, just published by Messrs Begg and Co., of Dunedin. It is from the pen of Miss Annette Wilson, and introduces the airs of the following popular songs, viz. :—" White Wings," " Pretty White Lilies," and " The Ship that Never Returned." It is embellished with a very attractive frontispiece. Manganese ore of marketable quality and in payable quantity has been discovered within a couple of miles of Taiori Mouth. Professor Ulrioh has examined the ore and the locality of its disposal, and speaks very hopefully of the prospect of working it profitably. It is contemplated to form a oraal} looal company, and send a trial shipment Home. According to the Wellington correspondent of the "Dunedin Star," exolusive of the savings sought to be effected by the reduction of school age and the abolition of Land Boards, both of which proposals tho House last year disapproved, it is claimed that ministers will be able to show greater savings in the administrative cost of the country than they promised when taking office. We learn from the " Post" that the "Saurian Monßter" whjoh was tho cause of great exoitement in Auckland last year and which is now on exhibition in Wellington rosembles the seal family in a general way, but haa yet some features of dissimilarity, which make its classification difficult. It is about 12ft in length, measuring from tip to tip, and is covered with light brown fur, The " Wellington Post " is informed that a private letter received by tho last mail from* a gentleman in London, who is likely to bo well informed on the subject, says it is coneidered probable in railway ciroles there that Mr H. T. Smith, who was seorotary to the late Mr Griersoc, general manager of the Great Western Railway, will receive tho appointment of Chief Commissioner of New Zealand Railways. The writer adds that Mr Smith would be an excellent man for the position. .

An entertainment, under the auspices 0' the Good Templar Lodges, will be held in th e .Oddfellowß' Hall to-morrow evening. A meeting of persons interested in the formation of a Coursing Olub will be held at Mr W. Zander's rooms to-morrow afternoon ( at half-past three o'clock. I ( Member3 of the Ashburton Football Olub' are reminded that the first praotioe matoh of the season will be held on the Domain ground to-morrow afternoon, at 3 o'clock. Sides will be ohosen by the Captain and Yioe-Oaptain. On Tuesday evening Mr Andrew Gunderson's house at Alford Forest was destroyed by fire. The insurance amounted to £50, but the loss is greatly in excess of that. All the contents were destroyed, including a few pounds in cash and notes. The origin of the fire is unknown. Mr Gunderson, who left the house about twenty minutes previously, states that there was a small fire on, but he carefully covored it up with ashes, and he declares it impossible for the misohief to have started from that source. There was a large assembly at the Salvation Army Barraoks last evening, the particular attraction being a " musical battle." Several visitors from Inveroargill and other parts of the colony were present, and the various pieoes rendered were given in excellent Btyle. The Army, Bhouldthey continue to give theße oonoertß gratuitously, should be well patronised during the winter months. Stone's " Otago and Southland Directory for 1888 " muoh more than keeps up the deservedly high reputation established by previous issues of that exceedingly ussful publication. In addition to being a most oomplete direotory for the Southern Provinces and its several cities and towns, there is an immense amount of information useful to residents in every part of the colony. The area of all the paßtural holdings, their rentals, and dates of the expiry of the leases are stated ; a oomplete index of Municipalities is given; judicial, eduuational, and ecclesiastical directories; a direotory of societies, a post and telegraph direotory ; a oalendar with reminders of dates of all publio f unotions, etc, and a digest of all Act a of Parliament bearing upon the ordinary avooations of life. Besides thiß are many tables of statistics which will be exceedingly useful, in the compilation of whioh Mr Stone has had the valuable assistanoe of Mr Hayter, the well-known Viotorian Statist. Mr Stone has himself had great ! experience in work of this kind, having been at one time connected with the publication of the " London Direotory," and the volume before us is sufficient evidenoe of the great skill' and paiqs whioh he has brought to his task. We understand that tbe firm have it : in contemplation to undertake a similar direotory for Canterbury, should sufficient : enoouragement be reoeived. The printing and binding has been admirably carried out at the offioe of the " Dunedin Evening Star." Mr Stone has kindly donated a copy of the t work to the Ashburton Publio Library, and r has been courteous enough also to forward a , copy to the office of this paper, for whioh he has our thanks. The directory oan be obtained * of Mr H. M. Jones, stationer, the iprioe (12s 3 6d per copy) being exceedingly reasonable. Aooording to the " Tagblatt" of Vienna, 1 the Marquis of Salisbury has distinctly stated * to some of the foreign ambassadors accredited 1 to the Court of St. Jamea' that the adhesion of Crreat Britain to the triple alliance of Ger--3 many, Austria-Hungary, and Italy is only a 3 provisional one and contingent upon certain j eventualities, one of these being any action on the part of Russia which should menace the integrity of the Turkish empire. ' At tbe inqueßt on the body of tbe man Drayton, who poisoned himself at Waimate on Wednesday, the evidence went to show that deceased had bought a two-ounce bottle of ohlorodyne. His wife shortly afterwards ■ smelt the drug, and seeing the empty bottle, I sent her son to Dr Nicholls, and told him to , ask if deceased had taken the contents of the ' bottle, would it do him any injury. The doctor replied, " Yes, it was enough to kill an * elephant," The boy asked the doctor to go to the house, but he did not go for some two , hours, and after he had been sent for three t times. On the first ocoasion the dootor ordered an emetic of mustard and water, but this had no effect, and the next time the boy s came the dootor gave [him a powder. Dr - Nicholls stated that be had not been requested ) to go and see the deceased, and furthermore ) that he had to attend to some other patients. r A verdict ;in accordance K with the facts was returned, and the jury added a rider that in . their opinion Dr Nioholla was deserving of 1 the gravest censure in negleoting to proceed \ at once to the deceased, when he beoame ; aware that the latter had taken ohlorodyne. i i )